Southampton Lettings Market Update: Spring 2026

Southampton’s rental market is running two stories at once. Houses are holding firm, with rents across the city and its eastern neighbourhoods either growing steadily or, in the case of Bitterne, posting some of the sharpest gains seen in any part of the local market. Flats are more complicated: Ocean Village and Woolston have seen flat rents soften noticeably over the past twelve months, while Eastleigh’s flatted stock is doing the opposite. For landlords with portfolios spread across these areas, the picture is genuinely mixed — and the detail matters more than any headline average.

Local rental data covers the period to mid-May 2026.

What the local data shows

Southampton

Across Southampton as a whole, houses are letting at an average of £1,638 per month, up 2.4% over the past year. Flats are averaging £1,047 pcm, with a similar 2.5% rise. Those headline figures are stable, but the picture within them is more varied.

Two-bedroom houses, which make up a large share of the city’s rental stock, are letting at around £1,316 pcm, up roughly 8% on the year. Four-bedroom houses are running at £1,893 pcm, with growth of over 11%. At the other end, three-bedroom houses have edged back slightly, suggesting that the strongest demand is concentrated at the smaller family end of the market and at the upper end where larger, well-presented properties command a premium.

The flat picture in Southampton tells a similar split story. One-bedroom flats have softened, with the going rate sitting at £824 pcm and the area average for this size down close to 5% on the year. Two-bedroom flats are broadly flat at £1,115 pcm. Four and five-bedroom flatted properties, which represent a smaller portion of the market, are showing positive growth — but these figures reflect a handful of premium lets completing at elevated rents and should be read with that in mind.

Bitterne

Bitterne is the standout performer for house rental growth in this report. The going rate for a house here is £1,470 per month, and the area average has risen by 17.6% over the past twelve months. That is a significant move, and the bedroom-level figures give some context: three-bedroom houses, which account for the largest share of Bitterne’s rental transactions, are up around 2.5% on the area average, while four-bedroom houses are approaching £1,967 pcm.

Flat rents in Bitterne have moved in the opposite direction, down 4.5% to an average of £1,008 pcm. One and two-bedroom flats are the dominant type here, and both are broadly stable at the individual listing level — the fall in the overall flat average likely reflects a shift in the mix of properties coming to market rather than a straightforward price correction.

Sholing

Sholing is one of the more consistent performers across both property types. Houses are averaging £1,423 pcm, up 5.6% on the year, and flats are at £972 pcm with a 4.5% rise. Two-bedroom houses at £1,291 pcm and two-bedroom flats at £1,122 pcm are both showing healthy growth, and the three-bedroom house rate of £1,520 pcm is up around 2% on the year. Sholing doesn’t have the headline-grabbing growth of Bitterne, but it shows a rental market where both houses and flats are moving in the same direction — which isn’t the case everywhere in this report.

Woolston

Woolston presents the sharpest internal split of any area covered here. House rents are up 5.5% to an average of £1,464 pcm, with three-bedroom houses in particular performing well at £1,504 pcm and growth of over 6%. Flat rents, however, have fallen 6.2% to an average of £910 pcm. That divergence is worth noting for landlords with flatted stock in the area: while one and two-bedroom flats at the individual bedroom level are actually showing modest positive growth, the overall flat average has been pulled down by the mix of properties reaching the market over the period.

Ocean Village

Ocean Village operates at a different price point from the eastern neighbourhoods. Houses here average £1,965 pcm and flats £1,228 pcm, making it the highest-renting area in this report for both property types. However, both figures have fallen over the past year: house rents are down 11.5% and flat rents down 12.3%. The bedroom-level data is instructive here. One and two-bedroom flats are actually growing, up around 9% each. The fall in the overall averages is being driven by a contraction at the larger end, particularly four-bedroom houses where the going rate has dropped sharply. Ocean Village’s premium waterfront stock is repricing at the top, while its core flatted market is holding and growing.

Eastleigh

Eastleigh sits outside the city boundary but draws on the same demand pool. Its flat market is the strongest performer in this report: flats are averaging £1,140 pcm, up 12% over the past year, with two-bedroom flats in particular running at £1,175 pcm and growing. House rents have moved the other way, down 5.2% to an average of £1,410 pcm, with larger four and five-bedroom houses seeing the steepest falls. Eastleigh’s flat market is clearly absorbing demand from tenants priced out of Southampton city centre, and that dynamic looks likely to persist.

Synthesis

The clearest pattern across all six areas is the divergence between house and flat performance. Houses are growing in Bitterne, Sholing, Woolston, and Southampton overall. Flats are growing in Sholing, Southampton overall, and Eastleigh, but falling in Woolston, Bitterne, and Ocean Village. There is no single local story: the market is sorting itself by property type and by location, and landlords need to read both dimensions together.

The lettings market at a glance

Rental figures reflect a sample of recent listings and should be read as directional.

How the local market fits the wider picture

Southampton’s rental market sits in a broader context of sustained national and regional rent growth, though it is growing at a more moderate pace than many comparable cities. The average monthly private rent in Southampton reached £1,246 in March 2026, up 3.5% on the year — ahead of the South East average of 3.2% over the same period (ONS, March 2026). That positions Southampton as a market with genuine momentum, without the affordability cliff edges that have started to constrain demand in London and parts of the South East.

HomeLet’s most recent rental index shows national average rents continuing to rise, with the pace of growth remaining positive across most regions. Southampton’s 3.5% annual rise sits comfortably within that national picture and reflects a market where demand remains consistent rather than speculative.

The city’s rental demand base is structurally strong. Two major universities generate over 40,000 students, creating a sustained and largely counter-cyclical source of letting activity. Port workers, maritime professionals, and NHS staff add a layer of stable, long-term tenancy demand that is less price-sensitive than the national average. These aren’t transient renters — they are working households who often stay for several years, which reduces void periods and turnover costs for landlords.

On yields, Southampton continues to stand out in the regional context. Zoopla’s 2024 figures identified Southampton as carrying the highest rental yield in the South East at 6.42%, with some postcodes delivering considerably more. That yield premium over Hampshire and the wider South East reflects the combination of relatively affordable entry prices and robust rents.

The legislative environment has shifted significantly. The Renters’ Rights Act received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025, with Phase 1 taking effect on 1 May 2026. Assured shorthold tenancies have been abolished and replaced with open-ended periodic agreements; Section 21 no longer exists as a possession route. The NRLA has been advising landlords to review their tenancy management processes in light of these changes, particularly around the use of the new possession grounds under Section 8 and the revised rent increase procedure. Landlords who haven’t yet updated their standard documentation and processes should treat this as a priority. Full guidance is available via gov.uk.

What current conditions suggest

Supply constraints across Southampton and the surrounding areas point toward rents remaining firm over the coming months, particularly for well-presented houses in the eastern neighbourhoods. Bitterne’s 17.6% house rental growth over the past year reflects a market where demand has outpaced available stock, and current conditions suggest that pressure is unlikely to ease quickly.

The flat market is more nuanced. Where flat rents have softened, as in Woolston and Ocean Village, the bedroom-level data suggests the overall falls are partly compositional rather than a straightforward sign of weakening demand. One and two-bedroom flats in both areas are holding or growing, which is where the bulk of tenant demand sits. Landlords with larger flatted properties in these areas may need to price more carefully to compete.

Eastleigh’s flat market, up 12% on the year, points to continued competition for well-priced flatted stock as tenants seek value within commuting distance of Southampton city centre. The Renters’ Rights Act changes will take time to bed in, and the NRLA has noted that some landlords are reconsidering their portfolios in response, which could reduce available supply further and support rents in the medium term.

For landlords invested in Southampton, Sholing, and Bitterne in particular, current demand levels point to continued competition for well-priced properties. The city’s structural demand drivers — universities, the port economy, healthcare — are not going anywhere, and Southampton’s yield premium over the wider South East remains a genuine draw for investors looking at the regional market.

Lets Rent operates across Southampton and the surrounding areas, and the figures in this report reflect the markets we work in every day. If you’re reviewing your portfolio, considering a new investment, or want an accurate picture of what your property is likely to achieve in the current market, request a rental valuation or get in touch with our lettings team directly.

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